hector
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Post by hector on Mar 28, 2024 23:23:49 GMT
I find it astonishing that any Torquay United supporter can be in favour of Edwards over TUST and yet there they are on Facebook, disparaging TUST whenever they get the opportunity and claiming how hard George works for the club, that he was only doing as he was told. I’ve sometimes wondered if I’ve been “debating” with Edwards himself but using a fake account, so insistent are some that he’s a good guy.
I’m not sure if I could bring myself to support a TUFC if Edwards was in charge; it would just feel like he has won and through belligerent ill will, has captured our club just to spite us. The bloke has spent the last seven years basically briefing against supporters, looking to flatten Plainmoor and giving us our shittest team ever. Are we really meant to buy such crap that he has fallen in love with our little club and wants to take it storming up the leagues?
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Post by tustgull on Mar 29, 2024 9:45:17 GMT
Hearing that other potential investors are coming forward since the TUST announcement-so they must like what's being proposed and new members are flowing in since the announcement was made ,which also demonstrates a vote of confidence in the proposals.
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petem
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Post by petem on Mar 29, 2024 11:56:34 GMT
You only have to look at the Admin's / Moderators of the Yellow Army FB Group hector. One is TUFC. The Club! Meaning Osborne, Edwards, Hayman. I am not big in to FB and only joined to find out funeral details from a previous job. Once there though I thought why not use it and signed up to YA in all innocence thinking it is a genuine fans group. It is not. It is a Wolf in sheep's clothing! 😉⚽️ Hi Stefano, TUFC isn’t a moderator of the Yellow Army Facebook Group. It IS a moderator of the “Torquay United Supporters” Facebook Group. |
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sam
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Post by sam on Mar 30, 2024 11:03:47 GMT
I have put this on BTPIR. I wonder what the views are on this forum.
This 1 million a year loss. How about this. Has Clarke Osborne has walked away from TUAFC without losing a penny. It has been suggested to me (not corroborated) Osborne was bankrolled by one of the 6 big national developers to take over Torquay United with the aim of development or leverage with the council. This to secure a deal that would be financially beneficial to Osborne and the national developer. The council apparently never trusted the Osborne regime and recently made it clear there was no place within the Torbay Council area anyway. This info was imparted to the national developer who then pulled up stumps and consequently administration followed. When one looks at the profits of the big developers, such a speculative venture which lost 6 million is pocket money/small change.
This would perhaps explain the disdain shown towards fans, putting them off rather than encouraging them. The retention of a failing manager. The motive being to show there was no need for a club, thereby adding credence to relocation to some glorified park area with nowhere near the facilities at Plainmoor. The trouble was the fans kept on turning up and this confirmed to decision makers like the council there was still a love and need for the club. Thank goodness the boycotters were ignored. I could never make sense of Osbornes motives but this hypothesis seems to fit.
Also, could this explain why so much was lost during Osbornes rule. He didn't have to count the pennies. How much was Johnson on, I have heard £100,00 (again not corroborated), how much were the directors on? If the above is correct I bet money was leaking out of the club.
There may have been a 5 year plan but it changed after Ashton Gate. I just don't know. I do know it was a very strange relationship between the owners and the fans. I don't think I have known a business almost deliberately putting off the customers to buy into their product. None of the above is confirmed but it would not surprise me. Perhaps others can put flesh on the bones.
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rjdgull
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Post by rjdgull on Mar 30, 2024 13:03:52 GMT
It’s a possibility, Sam, and only speculation that is now not really relevant to the club going forward. However, the whole Osborne project was about building a new stadium and obtaining enabling development to fund this. An initial development option could feasibly have been sold to a larger developer to obtain the rights to carry out these enabling works and used or partially used to fund the club in the interim that could have been repaid back from profits if and when the project went ahead. The plan would have been something along the lines of :
1) identify a suitable site and purchase it, preferably without planning permission, so relatively cheap.
2) Obtain planning permission by showing, how crucial it was for the club and the local economy.
3) develop the site to enable profit to be made.
The elephant in the room, of course, was the conflict of interest whereby the club owner was also the developer so was not incentivised to get the best deal for the club. Other projects elsewhere suggest that a good deal for the club was unlikely to happen and invariably created a lot of tension for those with relevant interests in the club. The lack of engagement from both the owner and club board provided no comfort whatsoever so really hope the rumors of the current two directors staying on are not true as this would create a massive schism within the club’s support which may well be terminal.
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Mar 30, 2024 23:50:42 GMT
Hearing that other potential investors are coming forward since the TUST announcement-so they must like what's being proposed and new members are flowing in since the announcement was made ,which also demonstrates a vote of confidence in the proposals. Very good news hearing this. |
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Rags
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Post by Rags on Apr 1, 2024 14:20:54 GMT
Having listened to the BBC Radio Devon interviews, and not having known about the prospect of going part-time, I was interested in the comments that the BBC cherry-picked. I did think that the question was couched in a particularly closed way: "Do you think the club should go part-time or not?". Well, it's a bit more complicated than that.
I haven't seen the books so I don't know what the annual wage bill is. But IF (and it may not be the case) that the club employing players on a full-time basis is a major reason why they have lost £6.2m in the six years from 30 June 2016 to 30 Jun 2023, then we can only continue to be a full-time club if someone is going to put in the £900k pa that being full-time costs.
I can't really believe that a football club cannot be full-time on a turnover of... well, I really don't know what the turnover is because the published Accounts don't state a figure for that. That said, I cannot understand why Torquay United cannot be a full-time club without losing £900k per year. But if that is the case, then we don't have much choice: we will need to go part-time so that the club can exist within its means.
If we are going to successfully be a fan-owned club, then we cannot spend more that we earn. It really is that simple.
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rjdgull
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Post by rjdgull on Apr 1, 2024 19:27:05 GMT
Just because you buy the club for a £1 doesn’t mean that an awful lot of money has to be thrown at it to bring it back to an even keel. What then? Many changes will have to be made to stop the whole thing going tits up and even with a business plan in place, doesn’t mean that things will turn out as expected.
Main thing is there is at least one bid on the table so there will still be a club to support come next season. Now we wait and see.
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rjdgull
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Post by rjdgull on Apr 1, 2024 19:32:19 GMT
[a href=" Both TUST chair and Consortium lead Michael Westcott will be featured on Radio Devon from 2pm to outline their vision of the club going forward. "]link[/a] - interview can be found around the 7 minute mark. |
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Post by tustgull on Apr 2, 2024 8:39:50 GMT
Excellent interview and reasonable questioning. The next few days will be some of the most important in the history of the club.If there are any other potential bidders it would be ideal if they revealed themselves and outline their plans for the club before a decision is made.
If the TUST led consortium is the only bid on the table and gets accepted there will be an enormous amount of work to do to get the club operating as it should be both on and off the field but Michael Westcott ,in conjunction with TUST, sounds like he's got what it takes to implement the changes needed to make it happen.
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petef
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Post by petef on Apr 2, 2024 15:21:06 GMT
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Apr 2, 2024 16:52:52 GMT
If there are any other potential bidders it would be ideal if they revealed themselves and outline their plans for the club before a decision is made. Yes, it would be nice to hear from whoever else might be bidding given the years of no communication from the wretched Osborne ownership. It would be a shame, but very much in character, if Osborne just ushered in his preferred bid for due diligence and we are just told who it is to be. At present all we have in the alternative is Edwards’ Club Statement on the day the consortium bid was announced. I was very impressed with Michael Westcott in interview. A positive and sensible personality came across well. |
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Apr 3, 2024 13:45:38 GMT
I see Mel Hayman is reported to be fronting a bid. No mention of Edwards for now. This will be Osborne’s preferred bid one would expect.
No wonder the anti-trust orchestration elsewhere has been upgraded in the last week or so by the usual suspects. I’m pleased one bid’s backing doesn’t seek to divide the fan base. It might be needed again, so here’s hoping for universal support third time around when it’s needed to bail out the Club again should there be a ‘can kick’ down the road.
Good luck all parties. It’s also reported there is a third and it has been noted Pete Masters has been at games. If Osborne is kingmaker, I doubt luck will come into it, particularly, though. Thank you TUST and consortia for your dignified approach and openness in all this. It has been quite refreshing after the last few years under Osborne/Edwards.
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petef
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Post by petef on Apr 3, 2024 13:55:55 GMT
So as predicted Osbourne will have a final say and have a choice of bidders this Thursday pre administration. Very likely he will choose the Mel Hayman bid in spite as much as anything. You can be sure his decision won't be for the benefit of the football club but for what he can get back even if it's not any of his investment. One other mystery bidder apparently. And now the waiting game. Bid accepted or administration and they decide? www.devonlive.com/sport/football/football-news/torquay-united-face-massive-week-9202414 |
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rjdgull
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Post by rjdgull on Apr 4, 2024 6:40:50 GMT
Big day in the history of our club today as one chapter closes and another opens. Another 2 hour TUST meeting last night to discuss the mechanics of the bid following further meetings with consortium members by others on the board during the day and further communication since! Come 5pm there will be at least one bid on the table so the club will be able to continue although there is still a lot of digging to get out of the hole we find ourselves in. A massive amount of work has been done by Michael Westcott and Co to get to this stage and it always amazes me what people are prepared to do for this club.
TUST should be able to release a further statement tomorrow and would imagine the club will do so as well. If the TUST bid is successful then there will need to be a lot of updating and consultation with our membership as the due diligence process continues and next steps are agreed. If the bid is unsuccessful then as always TUST will look to work constructively with the new ownership for the betterment of the club.
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